The Genius Freak and The Bad Boy

Chapter 8

His cheekbones were so sharp it could've sliced an apple straight through and his forest green eyes pierced everything it settled on.

Basically, the guy oozes off perfection and made me feel, and probably look, like a clown in comparison and my button nose definitely wasn't helping. What bothered me most was that I could actually imagine painting my nose red and use those afro wigs and huge shoes and polkadot suits.

When the light turned green, he hit the gas and took a turn that led to my block. I poked around his car while waiting for him to pull up at my house, opening the dashboard compartment and noticed something glinting inside. I picked it up and took a good look at it.

It was a ruby pendant. Small, but beautiful nonetheless. I raised it so that it would catch the light and looked at it closer. I couldn't help the gasp that left my lips.

"It's real," I whispered to him and he glanced for a second towards what I was holding and I caught the smile on his face.

"Oh, that old thing. It was my grandmother's. She told me that when I finally meet the girl I want to marry one day, I should give it to her. It's some kind of family heritage." He said, his eyes glued to the road in front of us. I nodded though he wasn't watching me, while processing the thought and trying to hide the pang of jealousy inside me.

You're falling for him..

Shut up, conscience.

Only when I finally managed to shut the nagging voice up did I realize that Ryder had been trying to get my attention.

"Huh? What?" I asked deliberately and instantly blushing at how stupid I must've sounded. He smiled and shook his head but still voiced his thoughts. "I wondered how you could've known that it was a real ruby, a lot of people had to ask but you seemed sure of it with a single look."

I shrugged at the question, putting the pendant back to where I found it and closed the compartment.

"My grandma had a jewelry store and insisted that I learn about them and how to sell them when I was a kid," I explained and he simply nodded with a small smile still dancing on his face. I looked out the window, trying to hide my blush from him. Dammit, Luce, snap out of it! He's just a friend.

"Question," I said out loud after a few seconds of staring at the necklace that I had placed back into the dashboard compartment. "If it's supposed to be some kind of family heritage, shouldn't you keep it somewhere safer? Aren't you scared of losing it or breaking it if you keep it there?"

Ryder shrugged, "There used to be a box for it but I lost it. I like to keep it close to me so I keep it in the car 'cause no one else drives this car anyways."

I hummed, nodding slowly, accepting his explanation. "Fair enough."

We finally reached my house and I turned to look at him after making sure my cheeks no longer felt like volcanos that were threatening to erupt anytime soon.

"Thanks for the ride," I smiled at him and he mirrored my smile with his megawatt one.

"Do you have time for some drinks? Drake's supposed to be out so I'm kind of alone again." I said to him mindlessly while gathering my things, not exactly thinking about how that might have sounded, but when I saw his smirk and wiggled eyebrows, I realized that my invitation might have sounded too suggestive.

Dang it! Kill me now. Just kill me now.

Someone please bang my head against the wall hard enough so that I'll have a concussion. Please. It'll save me a great deal of embarrassment.

Anyone? No? It's a cruel world. Really.

"I-I.. I didn't- it wasn't supposed to come out that way!" I sputtered out but despite my effort in explaining, Ryder took no notice because he was already too busy laughing.